While Ryu was moving slowly in the large hall where shadows reign, his footsteps echoed, disappearing into the darkness. The suffocating silence hanging in the air had become a kind of oppression that seeped into his soul. He seemed unable to even hear his own breathing. His eyes were fixed on the round, black stone table in the center of the room. The figures seated on thrones around the table stood motionless, like shadows carved from the darkness. Their faces were blurred, their details lost in a haze. Their presence was a reflection of something otherworldly.
The aura swirling around him was crushing him like a sledgehammer. The waves of power in the air wrapped around his body like invisible chains, practically taking his breath away. With each passing second, he felt himself shrinking even more before these overwhelming beings. An unknown fear and curiosity were growing inside him, mixing together. "How was such great pressure possible?"
The silence was suddenly shattered. A voice that shook time and space echoed in the darkness:
"I guess everyone's finally here?
This voice was like a steel blade that years hadn't worn away. Hard and clear. After these words, one of the figures at the head of the table leaned forward slightly, mockingly. His voice intensified the chilling atmosphere in the room:
"I didn't thought that I was going to come here again after ten years, Snake."
Another figure responded, this time with a deeper, more authoritative tone. His voice was like thunder echoing across the mountains:
"The same goes for me, Eagle."
Ryu stood silently at the edge of the hall, trying to understand these unfamiliar figures. Why were these people... or beings, addressing them by their animal names? And why were they here? They seemed to completely ignore his own existence. Ryu was a shadow in the darkness, as if he were not part of this world. But he was more than just an outsider in this atmosphere. The force that caused his chest to tighten felt like a physical burden on his body.
Suddenly, a powerful voice that drowned out all other sounds and resembled a lion's roar echoed:
"Everyone shut up!"
When they heard this command, all the figures at the table put their hands to their chests and bowed their heads at the same time, chanting in chorus:
"We salute the Ancient Lion."
Ryu was breathless at the sight. His eyes were wide, his heart beating wildly. Why were these people bowing to him like this? "Ancient Lion? Why does that name sound so authoritative and powerful? Who is this person?" thoughts echoed in his mind, his eyes involuntarily drifting to the flags behind the thrones.
The massive banners hanging behind each throne seemed to somehow reflect the identities of these figures. Behind the figure addressed as the Serpent was a serpent symbol, coiled and rising on a dark green background. This symbol, like the seated figure, was dangerous and insidious. Behind the figure referred to as the Eagle, the flag, woven with golden threads, seemed to embody majesty and freedom.
But the most magnificent flag stood behind the throne of the Ancient Lion. On a black field, a majestic lion figure surrounded by a white aura. The sharpness of the lion's eyes and the majesty of his bearing were a concrete reflection of leadership and power. This flag dominated everything in the hall, as if reminding everyone that they must bow to this figure.
Other flags featured symbols of a cat, a shark, and a black panther, respectively. But the black panther flag was different. It looked as if a curse had been carved into it. The energy emanating from the flag's surface was more intense and threatening than the others.
Ryu's gaze paused as he realized the throne behind the Black Panther symbol was empty. A flash of realization struck him. "The owner of that throne... is it the Black Panther? Why isn't he here?"
Eagle broke the silence and spoke:
"Where is Black Panther?"
Snake let out a sarcastic laugh. His voice only added to the tension in the room:
"He's definitely dead somewhere."
Cat responded with a low growl. He tilted his head and looked at Snake:
"Isn't that a bit too rude an answer, Snake?"
As Ryu listened silently to these dialogues, his mind was filled with more and more questions. Who were these figures? What were they doing here? And why wasn't the one they called the Black Panther here?
The deep and authoritative voice of the Ancient Lion echoed once more:
"Enough! The absence of the Black Panther is not a matter to be discussed. Let's focus on the real issue now."
With the words of the Ancient Lion, the hall was once again plunged into silence.
The lion's voice echoed like a dagger slicing through the darkness of the room. Every word made the walls tremble, deepening the unknown within the shadows. "As you know, we have been able to locate the Celestial Physician's relic, the most important part of our plan."
These words fell like lightning into the silhouettes at the table. The figures seated on their thrones shouted in unison, protecting their mysterious presence behind the shadows.
"What?!"
The words seemed to darken the air around him, making the air around the room seem even heavier. Ryu flinched slightly at the echo. Celestial Physician... the name stabbed into his mind like a dagger. The weight of the word reminded him of something he'd seen in the past, and he spoke to himself, almost in a whisper:
"Celestial Physician?"
But this question wasn't just a surprise. In the depths of his mind, the pages of that old book he'd read four days ago flashed back to life. As shadows fell across Ryu's face, his mind began to speak:
"An old book I found in a dump near the libraries in Blight... it told of folk legends. The Celestial Physician was one of those stories. A simple doctor who only healed his daughter and the villagers... When looters raided his village, killed the innocent, and burned everything, everything changed when he found his daughter's lifeless body. He wanted to end his own life, but a hand reaching down from the heavens touched him..."
Ryu's eyes wandered absently to the silhouettes on the table. A knot formed in his throat as his mind recalled the details of the story written in the book:
"He was gifted with godlike power. With that power, he tortured the raiders, inflicting the darkest pain upon them. And then... he created something he called the 'Ancient Pill' for a raider who had nearly died. This pill... was a miracle drug said to raise even the dead."
Ryu muttered to himself, his thoughts swirling around his mind like a whirlpool.
"Wasn't that just a folk legend?"
After these words echoed in the silence, the figure nicknamed Shark leaned forward and spoke to Aslam. His voice was a mixture of excitement and fear.
"Are you sure?!"
Aslan sat upright on his throne. His face, hidden in the shadows, was invisible, but his radiating charisma seemed to captivate everyone in the room. He raised his right hand, pointing his index finger toward the sky. With a resonant tone that cut through the darkness, he spoke a single word:
"Here's the proof if you don't belive."
With his words, a deep hum rose in the room. The floor began to tremble like the groan of a monster. The cracks in the walls widened, shadows danced. The room felt as if filled with the breath of a dark entity. Ryu began to buckle under the pressure. His knees buckled involuntarily. The weight on his chest constricted his lungs, and he groaned in a voice barely above a whisper.
"Fuck... what the hell is this!?"
Unable to bear it any longer, Ryu sank to his knees. The old pocket watch he had been clutching between his fingers slipped from his limp hands and fell to the floor. The moment the watch hit the ground, the invisible mist surrounding it dispersed. Staring at the floor, Ryu, his eyes gasping for air, whispered:
"What… what just happened? It's like something disappeared from me?"
But before he could gather his thoughts, one of the figures leaned forward. His voice came like a slap from the darkness:
"Who is this!?"
Ryu raised his head with a shudder. He turned his gaze to the figures at the table. The eyes behind the shadows glowed like a light piercing through him. The pressure had gone beyond the physical, becoming a weight that seeped into his soul. The fear surrounding his eyes silenced the screams within him.
For a moment, the silence of the room tightened around his throat. The shadows thickened, as if the room were sinking into the depths of a dark abyss. Ryu could do nothing but watch this horror unfold in a whisper.
Ryu's knees trembled, and the words that came from his mouth came out muffled and broken. His eyes were locked on the bright eyes of the figures at the table; fear gripped his body. He tried to swallow, but the knot in his throat would not break. He opened his mouth, but before he could utter a word, he began to tremble.
"I-I… I-I just…"
Ryu's voice was trembling and hoarse. His knees grew weaker, unable to withstand the pressure. The weight on his chest was crushing his soul. His gaze dropped to the floor, fixated on the old pocket watch on the floor. Despite the scratches, the watch still emitted a mystical aura.
The largest figure on the table, Aslan, suddenly straightened. His silhouette in the shadows was filled with menacing power. His glowing eyes locked on the watch, which had suddenly slipped from Ryu's hands and fallen to the floor. The air in the room grew heavier, as if squeezed by an invisible hand. Aslan's voice was like thunder:
"This watch… is it the Black Panther's watch?"
Ryu was frozen to the core by the words. Aslan rose from his throne in a sudden movement. The palace seemed shaken by the movement; as if he, too, was succumbing to Aslan's wrath. His hand slammed down on the table, the echo deepening the cracks in the walls and shaking even the thrones where the figures sat.
"Where did you find it?!" Aslan roared. The sound carried far more than a human scream; it was like an authority, like the rage of a god.
Ryu stared at the floor, but this only intensified his fear. The pressure was no longer crushing his body, but his very soul. He found himself completely pinned to the ground; his knees and palms felt as if they were being dug into the hard earth. Every word Aslan spoke made the air in the room heavier.
Aslan paced angrily, each step echoing off the floor. His eyes were like spears piercing the heart. His hands were clenched into fists, his anger radiating uncontrollable energy. He leaned slowly toward Ryu.
"The Black Panther's hour… So you've been cloaked by his passive ability. You've heard every conversation we've had this whole time, haven't you?"
The words stabbed Ryu like a dagger to his heart. "What… no! I… just found out! I didn't know!" he wanted to shout, but all that escaped his throat was a strangled groan.
The lion slowly raised his right hand. The movement stirred the shadows within the room. The air seemed to have turned into a vortex; Ryu felt as if he were tied to the ground by invisible chains. His hands, his feet, even his very breath had betrayed him. The pressure was strong enough to shatter his bones.
Ryu felt as if he were choking with fear. He slowly lifted his head; the lion's eyes, gleaming in the shadows, stared at him like death itself. In that instant, Ryu realized something: This wasn't just anger. This was a true threat, a fate he could not escape.
The lion's voice rose again, this time a command. His words echoed as if they controlled the very air around him:
"Speak now! How did you get here with that watch, marked by the Black Panther's mark?!"
The palace shook again. Shadows danced, and the walls surrounding the room groaned like prisoners. Ryu felt every thought in his mind melt under the heavy pressure. His lips trembled. He had to speak, but he didn't even know what words to choose. His eyes darkened, but he knew one thing: If he didn't, he would perish here, along with his soul.